The Day the Sky Fell Down
by Aria6
Summary: A what if story about Axl's life. What if X refused to let him become a Maverick hunter? Very angsty in the first chapter, might cheer up eventually
1. Chapter 1

_The Day the Sky Fell Down_

Axl had entered the room in a state of mild apprehension. X had been pretty upset over the prank he'd pulled on Lifesaver, but it hadn't actually caused any damage. Well, unless you counted a laser scalpel exploding. But in a Reploid medbay, that was a minor nuisance and in the context it had been so funny he hadn't been able to resist… even the other medics had been laughing.

So why was he being called in for an interview with X? Axl blinked as he saw someone exiting the room just as he jogged up.

"Hey, what's up?" He asked the younger rookie, who blinked at him.

"Don't you know? General fitness reviews," he lowered his voice. "And their pretty harsh. Good luck, dude." He walked away, dejection in every line of his body. Axl was momentarily taken aback, and then shrugged, his usual self-confidence returning. He entered the room without a knock and with a broad grin.

"Hey X! And how may I help you today?" He collapsed into a chair, giving the other occupants of the room a wave. "Hi Signas, hi Alia!" Signas just regarded him coldly, while Alia seemed… upset? And Zero wasn't around. Axl rather wished he was. He'd idolized both X and Zero when he first joined the Maverick Hunters, but since then he had come to like Zero more than anyone.

Axl smiled at X, but the Commander of the 17'th unit didn't smile back. Even for X, his expression was unusually solemn. Axl tilted his head, looking bright-eyed, bushy tailed and eagerly attentive. Like a puppy waiting for its master to speak.

A puppy that was about to be given a brutal kick.

At first, Axl didn't know what X was getting at. Sure, he had demerits. Everyone did if they were creative. Sure, he liked to have fun… who didn't? And if his attitude was a bit off and his philosophy about peace primitive, he couldn't be alone in that, either, could he? Zero was off on his attitude…

Comprehension followed, and then shock took over, cocooning his thoughts in pink candy floss. That couldn't be right. It had to be a joke. X was such a kidder!

Right?

"…Not acceptable for the Maverick Hunters." Axl watched as X closed the file he had been looking at… his file. "I'm sorry, Axl. But there are lots of positions…" X went on, but Axl was tuning him out. Shock was burning off, leaving horrible apprehension, fear and dread. Axl felt his face heating up, pricking, and his breathing went short. His stomach was tied into a knot as the horrible reality hit him.

Axl stood up jerkily, interrupting X in midword. The senior Maverick Hunter looked a bit taken aback, and Signas frowned. Alia looked away.

"I'll… th-think about that, X," Axl swallowed hard. He would not cry in front of them. Would _not _cry! He beat a hasty retreat before he had a breakdown in front of them. The blow was just too much, and he walked as fast as he dared to his room. Fortunately, no one stopped him. He didn't think he could make conversation right now.

He slammed his door shut as he entered his room, and flung himself on his bed to have a serious breakdown. He muffled his sobs in the pillow…

_This CAN'T be right, it just can't be right I tried so HARD I should have been made a Hunter last year but still Zero WAS teaching me all those special moves and why would he bother if they were just going to why why why X WHY…_

Axl wept until he couldn't anymore, until his eyes were stinging and he felt quite sick. He slowly sat up, and wiped his face with one hand.

_X… how could you…_Axl closed his eyes in pain. He was sure X had been the one to recommend he not become a Maverick Hunter. X had never seemed to like him at all… he was always yelling, even when Zero thought he'd done okay. Even when Signas thought he'd done okay. Sometimes, Axl had thought that X hated him. And the council would listen to X…

But why hadn't Zero defended him? Axl gathered his pillow in his arms, squeezing it tightly as the hurt filled him. Maybe Zero hadn't known when the meeting would be. Maybe he'd forgotten to check… maybe he hadn't known what X was going to do…

Maybe he just didn't care. Axl hadn't seen him much the past few months… just a few missions, and saying hello in the hallways. But everything had seemed to be fine. Why would Zero abandon him?

_It doesn't matter. It's over, it's done…_ He got up to pull out an old suitcase. It had held his few possessions when he'd come over from Red Alert. All the things in his room would never fit into it now, but it would have to do. He quickly filled it with a few changes of clothes, a jacket Red had given him, a tiny steel rose Alia had given him for Christmas... he hesitated over his pair of matching X and Zero plushies, then tossed them in as well. He had loved them too long to leave them, even if the taste was bitter now.

But he was _damned_ if he would accept X's stupid sop of being a glorified janitor or something at the Hunter HQ. He couldn't believe X had even gone on about it… that was just rubbing salt in the wound. He'd rather have stuck pins in his eyes than watch all the other rookies going on to what he couldn't be…

Tears threatened again for a moment, and the suitcase went blurry. Axl blinked quickly, then closed it.

When he walked out, there was no one to see him, and he ran into no one on his way out. That seemed oddly right. Let X wonder when he had left, where he had gone, and why he had left half his possessions behind.

It was the least he deserved.

Elsewhere…

"X, you are the absolute limit!" Alia fumed at him in private. They had been involved for almost a year romantically, and she was venting her spleen as a lover, not a subordinate. "How could you do that to him?"

"Axl?" X looked down, and then sighed. "Alia, it's better this way. He should find something better to do with his life than kill people."

"That's very high minded, X, but this is what he wants to do. And it's what he's good at," she said icily. "I can't believe how you went on about his grasp of philosophy to the council! What does it matter if he doesn't really understand what he's fighting for?"

"Of course it matters!" X was shocked by the suggestion. "Our ultimate goals are the most important-" He was cut off as Alia slammed her hand against the table.

"Not if we can't stay alive!" she nearly shouted at him, and X stared. He'd never seen her this angry before. "Axl has survived dozens of missions where your spotlessly pure philosophers die in their first battle! What's the point? You tell me X!" Her eyes narrowed. "Or better yet, why don't you tell me the real reason you forced him out of the Hunters! It isn't his philosophy, is it?" She stared at him intently, and X fumbled, trying to think of a good reply. He finally went with his natural instinct… the truth.

"It's… he's just so happy, Alia, so cheerful. He shouldn't be ruined fighting the Mavericks the… the way I was ruined." He could vaguely remember being that happy, once. It had been burned away through all the wars, the battles, friends dying… Alia stared at him, her expression changing from angry to sad.

"Well, I'd say you've started to take care of that… I don't think he'll be very cheerful after this." X flinched. "And you know, X, I think you're wrong about Axl… you see yourself in him, the way you used to be, but I think Axl is much closer to Zero. Fighting is part of who and what he is. He lost a lot of friends in Red Alert, but he was still happy…" She shook her head at X's obstinate expression. "You can be as hardheaded as Zero! And have you told him about your little quest?" X scowled at that.

"It's not my problem if he doesn't show up to meetings," X replied, annoyed. "Can we please talk about something else?" He was convinced he was right. Axl would find a new profession at Maverick Hunter HQ and stay the sweet, happy kid he had been when he joined instead of getting burnt out by endless warfare. X was sure of it.

Alia was a trifle more realistic. She was expecting Axl to be terrible depressed, and possibly do something extremely rash in an effort to prove his worth. She also thought he would probably go to Zero the instant the red hunter came back, and then there would be an explosion of cosmic proportions between him and X. Zero was fairly fond of Axl.

Neither one of them expected Axl to throw about three years of his life in a heartbeat.


	2. Chapter 2

Axl spent the first four days of his freedom in a homeless shelter for Reploids. The most common users of such places were Reploids who had survived a Maverick attack. Reploids had a better chance than humans of making it, so their shelters were typically more of a refugee camp, holding them until they could find a place in a new city. Of course, there were those like Axl, who had lost a job that included free room and board. And there were a few that were obviously defective in some way, addicted or addled.

After the second day, Axl desperately wanted to leave. There was no privacy whatsoever… after supper, the tables were cleared away and bedrolls set out. It reminded him of some camps he had seen after a Maverick attack. And a girl near him always seemed to be crying in her sleep. He'd found out that she had been a nursery Reploid in Earthsaver III, and that she'd seen what had happened to the toddlers and babies. He was sympathetic with her trauma, but she still kept him up. And by the smell, several people in the room hadn't bathed in weeks.

On the fourth day, Axl checked his credit balance and was pleasantly surprised. His last paycheck had finally come through, and a bonus for the general review! The irony was deadly, but he wasn't going to refuse the money right now.

Checking the local newspaper had given him some locations with apartments to rent, but he wasn't sure he could handle paying the rent on one by himself. So he started looking through the others at the shelter to see who else was ready to go. He found one person who was interested.

"I don't have a job yet, and no money for a deposit," a large male in black and white armor, with red crystals and silver piping, said. His skin was almost as dark as his armor, and he was almost sitting at attention. Axl eyed him, interested… he had the look of someone who might have once belonged to Repliforce. All Reploids had armor, but this ones looked military grade, and he had a functional buster. But after they had all been labeled Mavericks, a history with Repliforce was more of a black mark than anything Axl had done. It almost guaranteed no legal military organization would take him, and he somehow doubted this guy would do anything illegal. "Hell, I don't know what kind of job I'd get."

"I know what you mean," Axl said with feeling. "But there are a lot of jobs where no one checks your resume." The Reploid gave him a blank look, and then sighed.

"I guess. Anything's better than this place… what's your name? I'm Castus," he grinned sourly. "That means "pure and chaste" in Latin." Axl laughed, then smiled.

"I'm Axl. Pleased to meet you," and he really was, as he reached out to shake Castus' hand. He felt unexpected warmth for the other Reploid. They had both been dealt bad hands, from fate and malice. Castus frowned.

"Axl… haven't I heard of you? Aren't you a Hunter?" Then his eyes widened. "Wait, I remember! You were involved in that whole thing with Epsilon, right?" Axl flinched. The last thing he wanted was to be reminded of his past.

"Yes, I was," he replied shortly. "But I'm not a Hunter anymore. My attitude was deemed unacceptable." Castus stared at him, shocked, and Axl added, "can we talk about something else?"

"Uh, sure," Castus shook his head, muttering something about idiots, but obligingly changed the subject. "Do you have any ideas for places?" Axl nodded, spreading out the newspaper.

"I have enough money for the deposit from my last paycheck…" He stopped as he thought of something. "Hey, didn't Repliforce pay you?" It seemed odd that his companion wouldn't have any money. Castus gave him a hard edged grin.

"Oh, sure they did. The accounts were connected to the main Repliforce ones so we could be paid instantly. And when Repliforce was declared Maverick, they seized all the accounts… including everything they were linked to," he said bitterly. "And there's no way to get it back. I tried for years. I must have had 50,000 in that account." Axl winced, looking down.

"I'm sorry..." He wasn't really sure what he was apologizing for. He hadn't been a Hunter when Repliforce had been destroyed… he hadn't even been created then. Castus sighed, and Axl looked up as a heavy hand patted his shoulder.

"Not your fault. You weren't even a Hunter back then… I shouldn't be unloading my troubles on you," Castus shook his head. "It's just so hard. I was built for Repliforce, it was all I knew, and I'm no good at this civilian life stuff. I don't even know how to write a resume." Axl scratched his head, thinking about that. He didn't really know how either.

"Perhaps I could help you with that?" Axl blinked, then turned to look at a female Reploid. Her armor was a buttery yellow color, and she was wearing a mint green top of some filmy material and a matching skirt over her armor. They swirled as she walked, giving her a very delicate and feminine appearance. It would have been better if there hadn't been stains on both, and a tear in the skirt. Axl looked into her face, examining her… she had a beautiful complexion, peaches and cream, with bright blue eyes. Her face was not exceptionally beautiful, but it was open and friendly. Her hair was dark gold and held back in a long, single braid. She was wearing a brown felt cap, and Axl blinked as he saw the logo that had been embroidered onto it.

"San Diego Union-Tribune?" He said with faint disbelief, then remembered. During the last Maverick war, San Diego had been razed almost to the ground when some of the army unit stationed there had gone Maverick. The Union-Tribune no longer existed. "Oh, I'm sorry." She waved his apology away.

"It's nothing. But I can write resumes for you, if you want a new roommate," she smiled sadly. "I can't find a job as a reporter. This wretched city is lousy with them, and I was only a cub reporter." She took a seat beside them, then smiled warmly as a tiny female brought over a plate of food. Basic mush, but it was warm and filling. "Thank you, dear."

"C-Can I come too?" The girl asked tentatively, and Axl winced as he recognized her. She was a tiny little thing, with bright blue armor touched with silver. Her face was very white and looked pinched, and her eyes were a dark brown. She had a silver headband, confining her short black hair, and there was a logo on her armor for Rainbow Daycare. She was the girl who always cried herself to sleep.

"Only if you get your own room." Axl said without thinking, then winced as she seemed to crumple in on herself. She started to beat a retreat, mumbling something, but the other girl caught her arm.

"Don't run, dear. He means well, he's just a bit tactless." She expertly soothed the little Reploid, getting her to sit. "There, that's better. What's your name?"

"Modesty," she said softly, blinking at them.

"That's a nice name. I'm Rocco," she hesitated, then asked. "If you come with us, honey, what will you do?"

"I can cook, clean… get a job…" Axl and Castus exchanged a glance. They doubted she would be able to hold a job for long. She had probably been competent in her sphere once, but the Maverick attack had clearly left her with trauma. "But nothing with children!" She said with a sudden spurt of passion. "Nothing!" Rocco patted her shoulder.

"Alright, dear. She can come along, don't you think?" Rocco directed the question at Axl, who sighed. How could he say no when Modesty was looking at him with wide, pitiful eyes?

"Okay. Even if she doesn't get a job, she can keep the apartment clean and cook meals." She wouldn't be too expensive to support, so that might even be worthwhile. "I think we should check out this place in the upper east end…" He pointed to the ad in question, and soon they were embroiled in a lively discussion about various neighborhoods and rent rates. Before long, Axl almost felt happy again.

Almost.

Later that day…

"Our new apartment. Woo, joy." Axl slumped onto a couch. It smelled slightly rank and was definitely stained, but the springs were still pretty much in order. When you bought from the Salvation Army, you took whatever you got.

The whole apartment had been furnished from the same place. A beaten up kitchen table, enough pots, pans and dishes to cook, and two beds completed the ensemble. The whole thing had taken them all two trips and they had been forced to endure a lot of pointing and stares as they carried the stuff back to their rooms. But after the damage deposit, first and last months rent, the furniture and some food, Axl didn't have enough money left to rent a truck.

The apartment itself wasn't too bad. It was cheap housing, thrown up in a hurry for the refugees of the war, but the plumbing worked and there were no bugs. Axl anticipated a few problems with thin walls, but if necessary he'd buy earplugs. For now, just having his own place and being his own person was giving him a glow of accomplishment.

_X wouldn't believe it if he saw it! And I was the one who got everything started!_ Axl's happiness was tempered by the knowledge that tomorrow he'd have to start looking for a job. Castus was already looking through the classifieds and Rocco was typing at her laptop computer, the one thing she'd managed to keep in her escape from San Diego. Axl suddenly groaned as he thought of something.

"Does anyone have a printer?" They would need one to print out their resumes. Castus and Rocco gave him blank looks, then Rocco uttered a mildly profane curse.

"They're really cheap. Fifty dollars would get us one, and another twenty-five for the cartridge…" Castus said without much hope. Rocco sighed, then made a wry face, pulling out a battered credit card.

"Here, use this. And sign it with the name on the back." She handed it to Axl, and he blinked at it.

"Uh… is this legal?" The name on the back wasn't hers. She made a face, then shrugged.

"Sort of… it's an expense account to the Union-Tribune. I WAS authorized to use it, and I used it just last week, so maybe it's not cancelled. I'm trying to keep my purchases really low so no one will notice." Axl nodded, and pocketed the card. It might be technically illegal, but he doubted anyone would bother charging them. The card might be cancelled at any moment, though, which was clearly why she didn't want to use it.

"Okay, I'll go take care of that." He pushed himself to his feet, and left with a bounce in his step.

Being on his own might be difficult, and a little depressing, but he was already getting used to it.


	3. Chapter 3

Axl eyed the food on his plate a bit dubiously. It looked like some kind of seafood medley in teriyaki sauce, over a bed of rice and bean sprouts. The part that was giving him pause was the kind of seafood involved. He could see little pieces of octopus legs, complete with suckers. He'd never been at all fond of octopus.

It was really his own fault, though. He'd gotten a job as a busboy at a fancy restaurant, and when a shipment of octopus instead of shrimp had arrived, he'd been offered the opportunity to take it home. He'd only been working a week and payday was a week away, so he'd leapt at the chance. A whole crate would feed the four of them for the next week, if they were careful. If they weren't engaged in heavy activity, Reploids only needed one meal a day to keep their reactors topped off. Rocco's card had paid for several cartons of rice and various sauces and spices.

Castus and Rocco were eating enthusiastically, though. Axl finally dug in, and blinked at the flavor. The octopus was rubbery, but surprisingly good with the sweet but hot sauce that Modesty had created.

"This is really good!" He complemented the small female, and she smiled shyly, slowly eating her portion. "You're a great cook." She blushed in pleasure at the compliment.

They hadn't been entirely right about her. Modesty suffered panic attacks and crying jags, but she was still managing to hold down a part time job with a cleaning agency. Since the cleaning was done while the occupants were at work, no one cared if she had to take a few minutes to weep in a closet, or control her breathing to stave off a panic attack. Her time at a daycare had left Modesty prepared to clean up the most hideous messes with complete assurance, so nothing about the job itself bothered her. She couldn't manage full time hours without suffering from stress, but she made enough to pay her share of the rent. Not enough to share in utilities or buying food, but she made that up by cleaning and cooking.

Rocco had written resumes for Castus and Axl, but she herself was a bit of a wild card. She had written an article she swore someone would want to buy, and had sent it out to several magazines. Axl wasn't sure about that at all, but Rocco had been a reporter. She had been in print before, and that would help.

Castus' resume had glossed over his awkward membership to Repliforce, but that had left some jarring inconsistencies in it. Rocco had cheerfully perjured her immortal soul by swearing he'd been a runner for the Union-Tribune, scouting and shooting in conflicted areas. No one was alive to say otherwise, and the records had been vaporized along with the newspaper headquarters. The lies wouldn't stand up to any kind of security check, but working as a bouncer in a Reploid bar didn't require security clearance. Castus had been a bit pained when he landed the job, but he was making good money at it.

Axl munched slowly, trying to make plans… and failing. He really wanted to fight the Mavericks and make a difference in the world, but he couldn't do that anymore. What was left?

"Axl? Are you the one who's been using my laptop?" Rocco suddenly asked, and Axl started, then blushed. He hadn't thought she would notice.

"Uh… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to mess with your stuff," he stammered. "I just missed my own computer and, well…" He'd felt the need to write something. He'd always written little bits of fiction whenever he was feeling stressed or unhappy, especially. It was soothing, getting all his frustrations out on paper, and Red had encouraged the habit. So had Zero, and he'd even read the stories and liked some of them. Rocco waved his apology away.

"It's nothing bad, Axl. I was just wondering, when I saw that strange piece of fiction on my laptop. Are you a writer?" she tilted her head to one side, and Axl blinked.

"Not really. I just write stuff sometimes," he said, confused. Rocco laughed, then grinned at him.

"Axl, what do you think a writer is? Although you might need some more discipline about it if you want to write a book." She popped a piece of octopus in her mouth as he stared at her.

"A BOOK?" That was the last thing he had ever considered doing. It was also a strangely appealing thought. He already had a story that had been built up over time to almost three hundred pages…

It was on his computer at Maverick Hunter HQ, though. Axl winced at the thought, but he was sure it wouldn't have been deleted. Still, how could he go pick it up?

Unless he sent someone else.

"Castus? Rocco? Um… could you do something for me?" The two looked at him curiously, and he took a deep breathe before he started to explain. "I was really upset when I left the Hunters, and I left in a hurry with what I could carry. But I own the computer and everything in my room, and my computer has a story I've just been going on with for a long time… maybe I could even sell it. But I don't want to go back there. So could you pick up my stuff for me?" Castus frowned, considering that.

"Maybe if you give us a note saying we're allowed to take it," he said reasonably. "I don't think they would release it, otherwise."

"And what should we tell them if they ask where you are?" Rocco asked, and Axl shrugged.

"Tell them I don't have anything to say to them," he said bitterly. "Especially X. That's all."

"Harsh," Rocco commented, but then dropped the subject. She'd heard about his 'unacceptable attitude' from Castus. "That's no problem for me, I'm not doing anything tomorrow anyway. Castus?" Castus finished his food, then shrugged.

"I'm off, so sure. But how much stuff are we talking about?" Axl considered the things he'd left in his room. He didn't want most of them.

"Not a lot… mostly the computer and the monitor. There is a gaming system and some games we could use or sell. The rest of it is clothes and stuff, things I can live without." His new job had provided uniforms, and he'd taken the best of his casual wear when he left. "Oh yeah… there's also a small TV."

"A TV?" Rocco perked up. "That would be excellent! I've been missing my Judge McKenna fix all this time."

"I do miss Law and Order," Castus said thoughtfully. "It would be nice to have that back… alright, we'll take care of it for you. Just write that note." Axl nodded, and got up to do that.

The last thing he wanted was to ever see Hunter HQ again, but he needed his stuff. This was really the best way to get it.

The same day…

Alia crossed her arms and glared at X, who was sitting at a desk, resting his head in one hand. He looked dejected, but it wasn't softening her attitude in the least.

"He's been gone almost two weeks and you just _noticed?_" The quiet venom in her voice was absolutely deadly. X almost flinched away from her. He was starting to get the sickening feeling that he'd messed up badly.

"I thought he was just sulking in his room. The cafeteria is open 24 hours a day, he could have just been hiding… he wouldn't answer his door, was I supposed to break it down?" Alia just stared at him, and X finally threw up his hands. "We didn't know he was gone until he didn't show up for vocational testing! Alia… Alia, I'm sorry." Alia took a deep breath, obviously controlling her temper.

"It's alright. I shouldn't have trusted you to watch him in the first place," she said shortly. Then she glowered at him again. "He could be dead in a ditch somewhere for all we know. In fact, he probably is! He probably went to fight Sigma single-handedly to prove he could." X blanched at that image.

"He _wouldn't_ have!" X said, but his voice was weak. He knew Axl very well could have. Alia just snorted.

"And you STILL haven't told Zero about this! He's going to get back from Africa soon, you know." Zero had already been back several times, actually, but very briefly. Too briefly to notice the absence of a certain redhead.

"I know!" X gripped his head. "I just don't know what to do… you haven't found any trace of him?" The navigator pursed her lips, then sighed.

"Nothing. He's either in the city, someplace we can't scan, or… gone." Scanning in the city was almost impossible, because of all the conflicting energy signatures. Someplace they couldn't scan meant Maverick held territory, and gone meant dead. X and Alia sat together for a moment in shared misery.

Then someone knocked on the door.

"Come in, it's open," X said, grateful for the interruption. A junior Hunter poked his head in.

"Sir? You wanted to know if anyone heard anything about Axl?" he asked tentatively, and Alia turned around to stare at him as X sat bolt upright. The rookie looked flustered at the sudden attention.

"What is it? Has he been found?" X asked urgently, and was disappointed as the rookie shook his head.

"No, sir, but there's two people in the lobby who want to pick up his things. They have a note from him." X blinked, then exchanged a glance with Alia. What could this be about?

"We'll come see them." X said, standing up. He led the way out, walking quickly to the lobby.

He was a little startled to see the pair waiting there. One of them was clearly uncomfortable, and looked vaguely familiar… X frowned, trying to place the recognition.

"Don't I know you?" He questioned the large male Reploid, who flashed him a hard-edged grin, then a mocking salute.

"Lieutenant Castus, Repliforce." Conversation stopped dead in the lobby as people turned to stare at the Reploid who had the temerity to use the name of that long-dead organization. X flushed in embarrassment, trying to think of something to say, and Rocco stepped into the awkward silence.

"I'm Rocco, formerly of the San Diego Union-Tribune." She smiled cheerfully, pointing at the defunct logo on her cap. "Axl sent us for his things, can we please get them?"

"What's Axl doing?" Alia broke in, excited. "Where is he? Is he well?" Rocco frowned slightly, glancing up at Castus, who answered.

"He's physically well. He told us to tell you, especially you, X, that he has nothing to say." X stepped back at that verbal slap in the face. He wasn't used to getting such pointed, hostile rejections. Castus grinned again. He was more than pleased to give X that smack-down.

"You know, what happened to Repliforce is not X's fault." Alia felt she had to support X in this… it was nothing but the truth. Castus looked at her for a moment, wanting to disagree, but finally nodded.

"No, I don't blame him for that," he said, his voice rough. "But I blame him and all of you for what's happened to the survivors." Alia frowned, wondering what he meant, but he didn't give her a chance to ask. "Where is Axl's quarters?"

"…This way." X finally said. He wanted to ask more questions, but he could tell neither of them would answer. At least Axl was alive… even if he hated him.

But the thought of Axl hating anyone was just so alien, so… wrong. X had a cold feeling at the thought.

What had he done?


	4. Chapter 4

For the next few weeks, everything went fine. Not ideally… in an ideal world, Axl and Castus wouldn't be wasting their real skills… but fine. Modesty was getting more hours and managing to cope, while Rocco cheerfully researched and wrote articles which she had no guarantee would ever be published. His own book was almost done, and he'd begun researching publishers, but there were no guarantees.

Then something unexpected happened. Unexpected, but not at all unpleasant.

"Hi everyone!" Rocco burst into the apartment in a state of high excitement. No one looked up. Modesty was asleep on one side of the sofa, Castus was out, and Axl was too tired to be interested. He was rapidly coming to hate his job. A lot of his coworkers had the brains of weevils, and the customers could be even worse in a lot of ways. Getting cleaned up after that woman had dumped a cup of water on him hadn't been fun… "Guess what?" She grinned widely, and Axl sighed, changing the channel.

"What?" he sounded bored and didn't much care. Rocco didn't care either, though… she was confident her news would get a reaction eventually.

"I bought a DVD player!" She said gleefully, and opened a large shopping bag she had brought in. "And a ton of movies! And some pizzas and coke! We're having a PARTY!" That did catch Axl's attention, and he turned in his seat to stare at her.

"Rocco, you haven't paid the rent yet." He said, slightly overwhelmed, and she gave him a wink.

"I have now." She stepped forward with a smile and deposited four hundred dollars neatly into his hand. Axl stared at the money for a moment, then blinked at her.

"Did you knock over a 7-11, or am I missing something?" he couldn't imagine Rocco doing something illegal, but… "Oh! Did you sell that news article?"

"Finally figured it out!" Rocco bounced on the balls of her feet, then plopped down on the sofa beside him. "Two thousand dollars worth right in my account." Axl looked impressed at that. It was enough to pay her rent and utilities for three months and still have enough left over for food and a bit of fun. No wonder she'd decided to celebrate.

"Wonderful! If you can keep that up, we might all be able to get a better place." Rocco made a face, but didn't disagree. They had all discovered the downside to quickly thrown up, subsidized housing. A lot of the families and groups living here were refugee like Rocco, but not all had reacted as well to the loss of their homes and livelihoods.

The family across the hall was fine, although their kid could sometimes be a bit of a brat. He'd stolen Modesty's welcome mat once, but his parents had brought it back with apologies. So they were okay. But the Reploid couple next door quarreled violently half the time, and they could hear every word through the thin walls. Last but not least were the pot smokers down the hall. Axl had suspicions they were doing something harder than pot, but he couldn't prove it. All he knew for sure was that someone had tried to pick their lock, and they'd had a load of laundry stolen. Rocco had not been amused to lose the last undamaged shirt and skirt she owned.

Now she would be able to buy more, though. Axl grinned at the thought.

"Let's get the pizza on the cook!" He stood up to go do that, then was distracted by the DVD's. "Ohhh, Nightmare on Elm Street 16? Is that series immortal or what?"

"As immortal as the protagonist." Rocco smiled as Axl laughed, then popped the pizzas in the oven and set the timer. Then he got some cups as Rocco gently poked Modesty awake. He filled up his and Rocco's with Diet Coke, and Root Beer for Modesty. Glancing at the clock, he got a Sprite for Castus. The older Reploid should be back any minute.

"To success!" He toasted Rocco, who grinned and sipped her Diet Coke. Modesty squealed in pleasure as she set up the DVD player, and found a copy of the Little Mermaid in with the DVD's.

"Can we watch this, please?" she asked pleadingly. Rocco giggled, and Axl shrugged.

"Why not?" he said agreeably. Nightmare on Elm Street would probably give Modesty a panic attack, but Disney movies were good too, in a different way. They could watch the horrors after she went to sleep.

Axl sipped his drink, and concentrated on enjoying himself while he could. He'd be back at his job all too soon.

Elsewhere…

It had taken almost three weeks for Zero to finally notice something was wrong. This actually was not entirely his fault. His mission to Africa had turned out to be a lot more difficult than he had expected, and he'd only been able to come back twice for supplies. He'd been in and out too quickly to greet anyone much, even X.

Then he finally from the mission, grinning widely at his success.

"And I totally vaped the Maverick base." He concluded the story he was telling a pretty young medic, who giggled and flirted charmingly. "Hey, honey, how's Axl been doing?" The medics usually knew, since he had to visit them frequently. The medic looked surprised, then put a hand over her mouth.

"Um… I really wouldn't know, sir." Zero blinked, tilting his head. Just a second ago he'd been her sweet Zero, now he was back to being 'sir'.

"Oh come on, what's he done now?" Zero said coaxingly. "You can tell me." That only made the medic more tense, and she stepped back.

"It's really not my place to say…" She said wretchedly. She really liked Zero and enjoyed his attentions, and this was ruining it. "Maybe you should ask Commander X?" Not that X would thank her for that, but the likelihood that Zero would repeat her name to him, on a scale of one to ten, was a negative five. Zero's eyes narrowed, and he stepped back.

"I'll do that," he said, annoyed. He wasn't going to do it right away, though. First…

He walked quickly towards Axl's room, and then pounded on the door until the person inside finally answered. A tired, annoyed rookie answered.

"What the hell do you-SIR!" The rookie went from sullen to terrified in a moment. Zero would have enjoyed the transition in other circumstances, but not right now.

"Where's Axl?" he demanded. The rookie stared.

"Who-gark!" Zero grabbed him by his collar, pulling him close.

"A kid with orange hair. Used to live in this room. Where. Is. He." The rookie squirmed, terrified by that deadly tone.

"I don't know! I was put here last week, I just got here two weeks ago!" Zero snorted, but let go, dropping him. The rookie was clearly useless. He stalked off to find someone, anyone, who could tell him what the hell was happening. He was getting seriously pissed off. Had Axl gotten killed… or worse? An edge of fear infected his emotions, but that only made the anger worse.

He finally found one person who was willing to give him the entire scoop, mostly because she was just as upset.

"…And so he just left!" Cinnamon said, distraught. "He didn't even take his things! Are you going to find him? He sent some people to get his stuff and never came back!" She sniffed, then rubbed her face with one hand. She had always adored Axl, more as a big brother than anything else. She had taken his loss hard. Zero patted her shoulder.

"Don't worry, Cinnamon," Zero said, his voice deceptively mild. "I'll find him. If you'll excuse me…" He walked away slowly, deliberately. All the Hunters and rookies who caught a glimpse of his face immediately flatted themselves to the wall. There was something about the way he was moving that said he wouldn't stop for anything, up to and including brick walls.

Certainly not the door to Signas' office. The door slammed into the wall so hard it raised a cloud of dust.

X didn't have time to react before there was a red blur at his throat, yelling obscenities at him. X couldn't really appreciate the things Zero was saying about his ancestory… he was having a lot of trouble breathing and trying desperately to peel Zero's hands away from his neck.

"Zero!" Signas shouted and tried to pull Zero away, but ended up getting swatted into a wall. X took advantage of the brief respite to surge up against Zero-

Alia ran into the room, and latched onto one of Zero's arms just as several Hunters piled into the room. It took all of them to subdue the red hunter, and even then they only managed it because Zero wasn't quite enraged enough to use his beam saber.

"X, I'm going to fucking KILL you!" Zero raged, infuriated. "You little asshole! You scuz! You-" his description got extremely vivid, and went into X's sexual habits. X blushed, mortified, and rubbed his neck.

"Zero, I didn't mean for him to leave-" X began desperately, but it was no use. Zero wasn't listening at all.

"-and the horse you ran in on!" he glared at a wilting X. "Now where is he? Don't you know?"

"No, but we've been trying-"

"Try harder!" Zero raged. "And I'm going to look myself. Don't send anyone after me!" He jerked away from the Hunters, and stalked back out.

He didn't care what Signas, X, or anyone else thought. He was going to find Axl.


	5. Chapter 5

Alia was rudely awakened when someone tumbled into bed on top of her. The first thing she noticed was the scent of alcohol. The second was the familiar voice saying her name.

"Alia…" Alia wanted to shove him off, but put her arms around X instead. He had tried hard to find Axl, but it had been three days and Axl hadn't really left a trail. X had many powers, but he couldn't access bank accounts, which was pretty much the only lead they had. So steadily, the blue hunter had been getting more stressed and depressed. Zero's pointed rejection was making things much worse.

X curled up beside her, and rested his head on her shoulder. She winced as she felt something wet there… he was crying.

"Alia, I screwed up so BAD. Axl's gone and Zero won't talk to me… I didn't mean for it to be this way…" X choked back a sob, clinging to her. Alia sighed softly, and cuddled him. _The road to hell is paved with good intentions, X._ There was no point in saying it, though. X was already depressed enough.

"Shh… it's alright. Shhh. You can talk to Juggler tomorrow," Alia soothed him. X sniffled, then raised his head to look at her.

"Juggler?" he asked questioningly. Alia hesitated, then nodded.

"Yes. I'm sure he'll help you." Actually, she wasn't sure of any such thing. But if the reclusive Reploid did decide to help X, Axl would be found in a day. If he did. There were some good reasons Juggler shouldn't help X.

But X was too drunk to really think of that. His expression was grateful.

"Thank you, Alia… I love you." He settled down beside her, and she smiled ruefully.

"I love you too, X."

The next day…

X rubbed his head with one hand. He had a box of doughnuts in the other. Really, what possessed him to do this?

In his drunken state last night, Alia's suggestion had made sense. But looked at in the cold light of sobriety, problems emerged.

The main problem was that what he was doing was completely, utterly illegal. Juggler was in charge of monitoring all the security cameras placed throughout the city. Because of potential privacy invasions, that was a very important position and was not supposed to be abused for private reasons. A request to find a civilian Reploid for personal reasons was abuse. The information on those cameras was only supposed to be used to find Mavericks and criminals.

Juggler's lair was deep within the Maverick Hunter HQ, for security reasons. Juggler himself rarely left the HQ. He had all the codes to access the cameras throughout numerous urban areas. That would make him a great asset to the Mavericks for a little while, if they ever got their hands on him. In fact, those codes would be briefly devastating before they were changed.

X took a deep breathe, and then opened the door. The room was very dark, but he could easily see Juggler by the light of several monitors.

Juggler was a tall, lanky Reploid. His armor was black, but with stripes of conflicting colors wound around it. Numerous plugs were hooking him directly to the monitors, and his head twitched in quick, birdlike motions. He turned around slightly to look at X.

"Can I help you?" His voice was surprisingly deep and resonate. His eyes lit up as he spotted the donuts. "Ah, a bribe! So what DO you want?" X blushed at the teasing tone, but couldn't refute what the other Reploid was saying. It was a bribe.

"It's… not a normal request." X hesitated, then drew in a deep breath. "I need you to find Axl for me." Juggler regarded him evenly, with an ominously blank expression.

"I hardly need to ask why," he finally said. "But you have no other options?" X winced.

"No… not outside of hiring a private eye, maybe. I don't know how to find people." He seemed to be spectacularly bad at it. Juggler considered that for a moment.

"If you don't mention it to anyone, and defend me if it comes up… yes. Word of honor?" X brightened, relieved.

"My word on it." X took Juggler's hand, sealing the deal with a handshake. Then Juggler grinned.

"Come back at the end of the day. I'll have him wrapped up with a bow on for you." Juggler turned back to his screens, and X beat a quick escape to go tell Zero the news.

Soon, they would have Axl back again.

Meanwhile, the object of the search was having a very peculiar night.

It had started when he woke up to find someone curled up around him. Someone who was sniffling quietly.

"Modesty?" Axl groggily turned his head to look at the tiny Reploid girl. She was crying in her sleep again, which wasn't surprising. But why was she clinging to him?

Axl managed to disengage himself from her, sliding out of bed. He looked around, trying to find Castus… then blinked. Castus bed was empty, but rumpled as if someone had been sleeping there. Maybe Modesty?

Axl suddenly blushed. He could hear sounds from the other room, though the thin walls…

"Oh." He sat down gingerly on Castus' bed, watching Modesty curl up around his pillow. Then he shrugged, and lay down. Hopefully, Modesty wouldn't migrate a second time.

He was actually rather glad Rocco and Castus had gotten together. Axl had decided days ago that they were perfect for each other. Castus was quiet and somber, while Rocco was open and cheerful. But they both shared numerous interests, and they were both extremely stable. Despite the superficial differences in their personalities, Axl thought they were kindred spirits.

However, the practical problems were pretty severe. He didn't really want to be stuck sharing a room with Modesty forever. She was a nice enough girl, but he was sure the crying could get very tedious in a hurry. So could the clinging to him, if she did that more than once. Of course, Rocco had been coping with it for weeks without a complaint, so maybe he could too…

Axl sighed, and tried to ignore the sounds from the other room and sleep. It wasn't easy, but he finally drifted off…

"Yeah, I have him." Juggler cocked an eyebrow at X. "But no more doughnuts?" X scowled, annoyed and impatient with the other Reploid.

"I'll bring you a box tomorrow… please, where is he?" X asked urgently. Juggler turned to one screen, which popped up an image of Axl leaving an apartment complex.

"That's where he lives." Juggler said calmly. "1238 Maple Avenue. Near the corner of Maple and Augustus." He twitched head head, and another screen showed a restaurant. "He's working at the Old Swiss Inn. I don't know if his shifts vary or not, but yesterday he went straight home after work." X nodded, relieved. "Oh, his apartment number is 122." X blinked.

"How do you know that?" He asked, honestly interested, and the picture zoomed up to show the code Axl was punching into the door lock.

"The last three digits are the door number. Fairly simple code," Juggler said calmly. "Would you like to go tell Zero? He's down questioning people on McMannus street. If you hurry, you might catch him."

"Ah… okay." X backed away. "Thank you, Juggler." He appreciated it deeply, although the way Juggler could find anyone with hardly any effort was a touch creepy. Still, that ability was why he was there.

Now, he had to find Zero and give him the news. Together, they could go hunt down Axl. Or maybe only Zero. X winced as he thought about Axl's message to him, earlier.

Maybe just Zero would be better.

A short time later, Zero pounded on a door as X watched unobtrusively. X stepped back one more step… then blinked as he felt something squish under his foot. He frowned, lifting his foot to find he'd stepped on a rotten tomato that must have fallen out of someone's shopping bag. "Ugh." He grimaced, trying to scrap his foot off. The apartment building wasn't that great, although it was hardly the worst he's seen either. But the maintenance crew was obviously lying down on the job.

Finally, a voice answered Zero's pounding. It sounded like the Repliforce lieutenant who had visited the Hunter HQ to get Axl's things. X couldn't remember his name offhand. The tone was an angry growl, probably because of Zero's vigorous knocking.

"If this is an aluminum siding salesman, I'm rearranging your face." The door was jerked open. "Who the hell are-" He stopped dead, blinking, as he took in the red hunter. "Uh…"

"I want to talk to Axl." Zero tried to shove past Castus, but he scowled and refused to move. The resulting battle of wills was interesting. Well, in a car crash sort of way.

"What do you want him for? He doesn't want to talk to you," Castus snapped at him. "Haven't you done enough?" Zero's glare could have seared the finish off furniture.

"You'll let me in to see him NOW or I'll-" Fortunately, what Zero would have done was cut off by a youthful voice.

"Castus, what's going on-ACK!" Zero shoved Castus far enough out of the way to give Axl a huge hug. "Z-Zero?"

"Axl, geez, I've MISSED you! Why didn't you come to me about this shit? I'd've shoved X's head in a toilet for you!" X winced, and tried hard to fade into the woodwork as Zero ruffled Axl's hair.

Axl, meanwhile, was in a state of shock. Then a tight knot of pain loosened in his chest. It had hurt, thinking that maybe Zero just didn't care what happened to him. And it was so… touching… Zero had actually gone to the trouble of finding him. Axl sniffed, then suddenly clung to him tightly.

"I've missed you too," he whispered, as the homesickness suddenly hit him. He wouldn't let himself feel it before, not when he was working so hard to get his life in order. But he really missed the Hunters, and everything about being one. He was hardly aware of Castus stepping back, his face expressionless.

"You can come back, Axl. I'll make them reinstate you. You'll be a Hunter for sure." Zero promised, and Axl believed him. No one wanted to stand against Zero in a bad mood, and X was in a corner, diffident, so he was sure Zero had been spreading misery around. But…

But.

"I can't leave my friends. They need me to help make the rent," he protested. Zero frowned, and looked over Castus carefully.

"You look like you know how to fight," Zero observed. "Would you like to join the Hunters, too?" Castus just stared at him blankly.

"I was a member of Repliforce." That should have made Zero's suggestion utterly impossible, but Zero wasn't one to worry about black marks. He waved that away.

"I'm sure we can arrange something," he said confidently. "If X helps. He WILL help, right?" Zero shot X a quick glance, and X grinned sheepishly.

"Uh, sure I will!" Right now, he would have been willing to promise the sun and the moon if it would get everything back to normal.

"So, who else?" Zero asked. Axl was wide-eyed, now, and so was Castus. Zero's energy was bowling them over them. It seemed like a force of nature, impossible to resist.

"Um, there's Modesty, she works as a cleaner. And Rocco's a freelance reporter." Axl said, bewildered by the sudden changes Zero was working in his life. Zero grinned.

"Perfect! The HQ always needs more cleaners, especially if she's not squeamish. And we do have a few imbedded reporters." That was true, although it was rare. But Rocco would probably be delighted with the opportunity. She was used to reporting from war zones, so the danger would be nothing unusual.

"Zero… you're nuts!" Axl suddenly laughed and hugged the startled red hunter. "Thank you so much."

"Aw, it's nothing," Zero laughed, disengaging himself. "Get everyone together so we can talk about it." Rocco and Modesty would have to agree, although Axl was sure they would. He grinned brightly, and went to get them… they were both taking a nap.

The future was looking bright again.


	6. Chapter 6

"I can't believe this." Castus looked up at Maverick Hunter HQ, complete disbelief in his face. Axl laughed, adjusting the backpack on his shoulders.

"I can't believe it either… thank you so much, Axl," Rocco said with a brilliant smile. She was incredibly pleased with her new assignment. It was rare for any reporter to get a chance at Hunter HQ, let alone a freelancer actually staying there. She would have to pass her articles by Signas to make sure she wasn't giving out any sensitive information, but she was more than willing to tolerate that. And she'd insisted on a private room with Castus. Axl grinned again as he remembered that. Castus had been embarrassed when she brought it up with Zero and X, but very pleased. It seemed to really be love.

Modesty was following them tentatively, her eyes wide. Of all of them, she was getting the least out of this change, but she hadn't protested. She trusted them a great deal.

"I'm really rusty… it's been years since I fought," Castus said, worried. Axl sighed.

"Oh, don't worry. They won't put you in a unit right away. We'll both have to go through rookie training… again." Axl looked over at Castus, pained. "This will be the third time for me." Castus arched an eyebrow at him.

"Haven't you been on several missions? I'd heard about it in the news. How could you have been a rookie?" That made no sense.

"Oh, I just kinda went along on the missions anyway," Axl said with an urchin grin. "Zero likes me, so X couldn't get rid of me, and I'm good! But I never officially passed my training. So I'll have to do it again. It'll be a pain, but better with you there." Castus chuckled, and ruffled Axl's hair.

"It'll be better for me with you there, too." Axl's faith in Zero had undergone a dramatic revival, but the red hunter still wouldn't have a lot of time to be with him. Zero had duties that didn't include watching Axl constantly.

Although Zero would probably keep closer tabs now. That made Axl feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Inside Hunter HQ, Modesty looked around curiously, then tugged on Axl's arm. He looked down at her in surprise, and she blushed, then pointed out a mural on the wall.

"That's so pretty," she said softly, and Axl looked at it, surprised. He had been taking the scenery in Hunter HQ for granted for so long, he had stopped noticing the murals in Hunter HQ. There were several very large ones, on different levels. They all paused to examine this one.

"Very restful," Rocco said. "Although a bit too stylized for me." The mural was of a meadow, or a field… very green with many, many flowers. It portrayed a bunch of Reploids and humans playing a game in that field. It was really very charming and very well done. "Those flowers wouldn't last a minute in a real soccer game." Axl laughed. Trust Rocco to be relentlessly practical, even about a work of art.

"I think it's supposed to be X's concept of the perfect world. Elysium, he called it, I think." Castus snorted.

"Paradise? I don't think so. One man's paradise is another's hell… and war is all about who gets to pick." He said sourly, and Axl blinked. He hadn't thought about it like that, but really, it sounded very accurate. Wasn't that true about X and Sigma? They both wanted to pick…

"True, but some visions of paradise have more value than others." They all turned at X's voice, and Axl winced. He hoped Axl wasn't going to dislike Castus just because he was Axl's friend… but that seemed too petty for X. And from the look Castus was giving him, the dislike would be mutual anyway. "Or do you think Sigma's vision is better than this?" X waved at the mural, and Axl winced again. That was an almost insulting question, and it was worse since Castus' had been in Repliforce. He'd had people calling him a Maverick before.

"Of course not," Castus said briskly, giving X an unfriendly look. X flushed lightly, as he mentally reviewed what he had just said and realized how badly it could be taken. "But I would prefer a vision a little less… sugary."

"Well, we can debate that later," X said, trying to gloss over the awkward moment. "I'm here to show you to your rooms, then take you and Axl for combat evaluations."

"Me? Evaluations?" Axl protested. "Not again, X!" That was the last thing in the world he wanted to do. But X surprised him, giving him a friendly grin.

"Not for YOU. But I thought you might like to be around when we put your friend through his paces?" Axl blushed at the gently teasing tone in X's voice, then blinked. X was acting more friendly than he ever had before. Had this whole incident made X reevaluate how he acted towards him?

Even if it had, Axl was still going to be wary around X for a long time. But he nodded. "Sorry X. You're right; I'd like to be there for that." He'd enjoy helping Castus out, and Castus would probably be happier with a friendly face nearby. Modesty listened with wide eyes, as Rocco jotted down a few notes. Axl wondered what exactly she found interesting in the lobby, or this conversation. It was hard for him to see anything interesting about it.

"Just come this way…" X delivered Modesty to the domestic wing first, putting her in the able hands of the director of that section, a motherly human woman. They stayed long enough to see Modesty relax into her able hands, then X took them to the rookie wing. Castus and Rocco got a room right across from Axl's, which was also a new room. Axl regarded it ruefully. He hadn't been expecting his old room back, but it was going to be a little confusing, memorizing a new room number and door code.

Once they had their gear settled, X took them to the practice rooms, with Rocco following, her notebook in hand. Axl finally had to ask.

"What are you writing? None of this is interesting." He asked, curious. Rocco flashed him a grin.

"To you, maybe, but to the outer world Hunter HQ is a mysterious place. All the usual pieces focus on your activities, but I think some lifestyle pieces about what it's actually like to BE a Hunter could be very popular." Rocco tapped her pen against her mouth thoughtfully. "Might drive up recruitment, too." X glanced back at that.

"Well, you can't reveal anything that might let the Mavericks know how this place is set up, but that could be interesting," he said cheerfully. "And we can always use more recruits." The Maverick Hunters were currently a little understrength. Castus looked on the verge of saying something, then held it back. Axl could imagine what he was thinking. _If you need recruits, why did you get rid of one of the best ones?_

Then another thought occurred to Castus, and he voiced it.

"If you need more recruits, what about the other survivors of Repliforce?" X looked at him, startled, and he shrugged. "Some have turned to crime, or managed to fit into civilian society, but a lot are like me. After we lost our savings, it was hard to-"

"Savings?" X stopped completely, this time, and turned to Castus with a frown. "What are you talking about?"

"Didn't you know?" He frowned. "All our accounts were confiscated. We were thrown out without a penny to our names… those of us who survived." X looked shocked at that.

"I never heard of that! I'll look into it," he said with a frown, and Castus shrugged. "Didn't you complain?"

"Of course I did! I complained to everyone I could think of," Castus said bitterly. "Even the Hunters. Everyone told me to talk to someone else. When I started going in a circle, I gave up."

"Oh…" X was quiet as they walked the rest of the way to the training room. It was the most advanced type, meant for solo practice… a holographic simulator. It was generally reserved for expert Hunters, and Castus looked at it apprehensively. "What level would you like to start at?"

"Ah… level one might be best." That was the most junior of levels, usually only used by Hunters who were injured or exhausted. X frowned, and Axl shook his head with a grin.

"Aw, Castus, have some adventure! If you were a lieutenant, you had to have been better than that!" He coaxed the older Reploid, who winced, but nodded.

"Level 3 or 4 used to be light training. But it's been over three years since I've touched a gun, Axl." Castus rubbed the jewel on his helmet, slightly embarrassed. "I don't know how well I would do at that level anymore."

"Oh, come on Castus! I bet it's like riding a bike. You'll get right back into it. Why not try level 3?" Axl grinned as Castus hesitated, but finally nodded. "Okay X, set it up!" X tapped in the specifications, and Castus readied his weapon, setting it to the lowest level before he stepped inside.

X and Axl casually walked over to the observation window. It was one-way, just like the windows in the rookie practice rooms. No one really appreciated being watched, but commanders always liked to keep track of how their troops were doing. This was a good compromise.

Axl blushed, then covered his face with one hand as X winced. It was embarrassing to watch.

"I guess starting fighting again isn't like getting on a bike…" Axl peeked out at the spectacle, then grimaced. The situation was getting particularly grim, although Castus was still 'alive'. Well, technically.

"Unless you count that time Zero tried going down South Broadway on a unicycle." X said with a grimace. The simulation finally ended, and Castus stumbled out, favoring Axl with a glare.

"I'm never listening to you again." X snickered, and Axl blushed.

"I know, I'm stupid! I'll go commit hari-kiri right away…"

"Actually, Axl, why don't you help him get back up to speed?" X suggested. "Zero and I need to talk to the council about changing your status, and that will take for a while." Axl winced, but nodded… he wasn't even technically a rookie right now. After X's first presentation to the council, it would take some work to get him reaccepted in the Hunters.

But with X and Zero both on his side, there wasn't much doubt of the outcome.

Note: Okay, I think that's about it for this fic. I might eventually make a sequel, though. Have fun!


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